


Wedlock

by Warp5Complex_Archivist



Category: Star Trek: Enterprise
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2006-03-26
Updated: 2006-03-26
Packaged: 2018-08-16 07:21:42
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,321
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8093272
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Warp5Complex_Archivist/pseuds/Warp5Complex_Archivist
Summary: Trip and T'Pol for better, or for worse. (06/19/2003)





	

**Author's Note:**

> Note from Kylie Lee, the archivist: this story was originally archived at [Warp 5 Complex](http://fanlore.org/wiki/Warp_5_Complex), the software of which ceased to be maintained and created a security hazard. To make future maintenance and archive growth easier, I began importing its works to the AO3 as an Open Doors-approved project in August 2016. I e-mailed all creators about the move and posted announcements, but I may not have reached everyone. If you are (or know) this creator, please contact me using the e-mail address on [Warp 5 Complex collection profile](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/Warp5Complex).

Archer wearily rubbed his forehead when he heard the news and tried desperately to wake up from this diplomatic nightmare he was suddenly trapped in. He looked the ambassador in the eye, silently pleading for a way out. "Are you sure?"

Ambassador Creloun nodded grimly, "It is one of our most sacred laws and I cannot allow it to be violated for any reason."

"Are you sure you can't make a slight exception for-"

"NO!"

Archer just sighed. "Then I guess I have to tell the happy couple."

* * *

"You wanted to see me sir?"

"Yeah Trip, come on in." Archer cleared his throat in attempt to chase away his own nervousness, "Do you remember that ceremony down on the planet yesterday?"

Trip couldn't help but smile. Last night was quiet possibly the greatest party he ever attended. The Eltakins had never seen off worlders before. So they celebrated this great event in their planets history the only way they knew how, by throwing the biggest, wildest party of all time. It had been amazing. There was dancing and drinking. People from all ages and walks of life had spent the better part of the evening getting drunk or getting laid. It was amazing. Hell, Malcolm even left early with a couple of local girls and wasn't seen until the next morning.

"Why yes, sir I do remember last night's party." He chuckled, "It was a blast, sir." Archer sighed. Again. He found himself doing that a lot lately. "Trip, do you remember what T'Pol was doing at the party?"

"Standing in a corner being her usual charming self."

Archer stepped towards his friend, placing his hand on Trip's shoulder. "Now this next part is VERY important. Did you talk to her at all?"

"Yeah I bought her a drink. Seemed like the gentlemanly thing to do."

"Oh no," Archer groaned. This was worse then he expected, "Trip, do you know what buying a woman a drink means under Eltakin law?"

"Umm no."

"It's a marriage proposal..."

"Oh well, good thing we ain't from their planet."

"Trip, it's a law. You proposed to her and you have to get married."

* * *

"I refuse."

T'Pol had managed to maintain her emotional control throughout the Ambassador Creloun explanation of Eltakin law and the problem Trip's 'proposal' was now posing. Her response at his conclusion, however, was the Vulcan equivalent of an outburst. "I will not marry Commander Tucker."

"Then, I'm sure your Captain can spare the Commander for a few years to serve his sentence in a minimum security pri-" Archer butted in, not even letting that situation even get mentioned, "Ambassador, isn't there some loophole for extenuating circumstances?"

"He bought the drink..."

T'Pol's eyes narrowed slightly at the memory of Trip's mistake, as if the very thought infuriated her, "I did not accept the beverage in question."

"Doesn't matter, he bought the drink." The Ambassador was starting to get annoyed with these people. Why was it so hard for them to understand the law? These people were slowly making him lose his temper. "If he cared enough to buy you a drink then he will care enough to marry you."

Archer could have sworn that he saw her roll her eyes at the man. In a different situation he would have smiled. "Mr. Creloun, what the hell kind of law makes people get married?"

Creloun rubbed his forehead and tried his best to be diplomatic. "Look, they don't have to STAY married, just under go a twelve day ritual and then get married in a temple of their choice. Nobody'll care what you people do after that."

"But I have no wish to marry the Commander."

"Then you won't mind if he spends the next few decades in prison."

* * *

Trip had spent the better part of the last two hours moping in his quarters, worried sick about what was going to happen to him. He knew T'Pol and there was no way she was going to marry him just to keep his sorry ass out of jail.

And that was understandable, it was his fault to begin with. He remembered the lecture they gave him during his training about interstellar culture. The first rule during every visit to an alien planet is gain basic knowledge of local law before interacting with the locals. One of the most simple rules in the book and he completely ignored it

Well, his old Vulcan science teacher had been right, his sense of fun had finally gotten him into serious trouble.

He only her bought the drink to tease her, sort of stick it to the party pooper. She didn't even accept the fucking thing! She just looked at him funny and told him she wasn't thirsty.

She didn't accept the drink.

Hey, maybe that was a loophole!

* * *

"Look, can I talk to T'Pol for a minute?"

Creloun just nodded at the Captain and leaned back in his chair, and twiddled his thumbs. It was obvious that he was getting bored with the entire discussion.

Archer grabbed T'Pol rather roughly by the arm and dragged her outside, when he was sure they were alone he started talking in a very hushed tone.

"Marry him." A feeling of quiet rage seemed to pass through her but she managed to control it.

"Captain, I will not exchange nuptials-"

"That's an order!"

* * *

Tucker's heart nearly jumped into his throat when he saw The Captain and T'Pol enter his room. He had a feeling this wasn't going to be a pleasant conversation. "Well, what's the verdict?"

"Congratulations Trip," Archer smiled sarcastically at his friend, "Your getting married."

When he heard that, he could have sworn he saw T'Pol give him the evil eye.

* * *

A huge crowd had gathered around the entrance to the marriage temple as the ceremony began. Despite the fact that nobody lived within six whole miles of the temple, everyone in the nearest village showed up to watch the beginning of the first Human-Vulcan marriage in galactic history.

Eltakins loved a good show and loved weddings even more, so this was a big draw.

Trip was awe struck by the large crowd. Sure he had always wanted a big wedding, but this was unbelievable! He smiled at what a big deal everyone was making about this, how happy everybody was. He couldn't help but get into the spirit. But then he saw hidden emotion in T'Pol's eyes and suddenly felt very depressed.

She was horrified. Like a doomed prisoner on death row.

He turned when he felt Malcolm's tap on his shoulder. It was almost time to get this show on the road. At the podium, Ambassador Creloun seemed to really relish his role in this little dog and pony show. "Okay, here's how this is going to go,"

He pointed to the temple and then motioned to the 'happy couple'. "You two lucky kids will be participating in the standard marriage ceremony. You will be confined to this temple for twelve days with no contact with the outside world. On the sixth day, Lieutenant Reed will be allowed to visit with you and see how you are doing. For the rest of your time inside the temple, you must perform five daily tasks that will be designed to bring you closer together. On the twelfth day you must perform the final test for the council of elders."

Trip was confused. This didn't sound complicated at all, it had to be harder then this. "That all?" Creloun slapped his forehead in forgetfulness. He reached into a small leather satchel and pulled out a stack of forms made out of a papyrus looking substance. "I almost forgot, you have to fill out these forms."

T'Pol's eyebrow raised significantly, "Is that part of an ancient ritual?"

"Naw, it's for the lawyers."

* * *

T'Pol entered her room and began to unpack her clothing from her Starfleet issue duffel bag and lay them in her bureau neatly.

If she allowed herself to feel emotions then this situation would be very upsetting. It was aggravating how Commander Tucker's inherent playfulness had gotten her into a situation with no escape what so ever. In twelve days, she was going to be married to the one man in the universe who was most likely to drive her into a brutal madness.

Over the past 12 hours, T'Pol had felt her emotional control slipping. She had felt fear and anger over the coming nuptials. But the most unusual thing she had felt was a slightly humorous twitch in the back over mind. Some small voice in her brain was laughing about this and saying things like "If only you could get Kas invited to the ceremony!"

It was quite obvious that she was going to need to meditate for more hours then usual this evening.

It was a small charity that Creloun had allowed them sleep in separate rooms, not only because she need her space but because of the Commander's strong odor.

She was at the other end of the hallway from him and could still smell him, his stench wafting lazily down towards her room.

T'Pol reached over and pulled shut the red curtain that served as her door, hoping it would block the smell. It didn't but it was a noble effort.

She down on the large hammock-bed suspended from the ceiling and began her meditation. Hopefully the smell would lessen before the end of the night.

* * *

Day One- The Rituals

1 The Ritual of Sharing

"Okay lemme see if I got this straight," Trip reread the form to see if he'd missed anything. Across from him, T'Pol kneeled in her standard meditation stance. "I'm supposed to tell you exactly how I feel. Then, you tell me how you feel and respond to my feelings."

He snorted and looked over the form a third time, "That's all? These are easy." T'Pol raised an eyebrow at his statement, "I was not aware you were looking for a challenge."

Trip couldn't help but look a little sheepish. She had a point. He sat down cross-legged and put the form aside "Anyway, I guess we should get this over with huh?"

"That would be the preferred course of action."

"Okay well I'm feeling nervous and a little scared. I really don't want to go to jail." He motioned to her, "Your turn."

"I have no feelings. As a Vulcan I do not allow myself to be distracted by such illogical distractions and dangerous emotions. Therefore, I have nothing to express to you at this time. As for my response to your feelings, perhaps you should have thought about your fears before you allowed us to be placed in this situation." She raised her eyebrow again, "Is that satisfactory?"

"Ummm...Yeah that'll do."

* * *

The Ritual of Touch

"Okay this time, we have to pay each other a compliment while touching a part of the other persons body." Trip grasped T'Pol's hand and looked her dead in the eye.

"I think you are a good person."

He smiled. This wasn't so bad. It was just like that stupid 'share time' thing Natalie had always dragged him to. He might actually start to enjoy it. "Your turn."

"You are a competent engineer."

Trip felt himself fume. "Whadda ya mean competent?" he growled.

* * *

2 The Ritual of Honesty

Twenty minutes later, they decided that fighting over T'Pol's comment was becoming tedious so they decided to just move on to the next ritual.

"Okay this time we have tell the other one thing you don't like about them." Trip smiled wickedly when he read that. This was going to get fun. He rubbed his hands together and got up from the floor. "I wish wouldn't be such a bitch all the time."

He plopped down on the nearby bed. "Your turn."

T'Pol took a breath and in the same monotone voice she said everything began to speak. "I will begin with your unprofessional behavior..."

Her rant lasted about two hours and covered everything from his odor to his casual behavior in front of the Captain. When she finished Trip felt like smacking her in the head.

"Thank you for your...honesty." He muttered through gritted teeth.

* * *

3 The Ritual of the Kiss

"You wanna skip this one?"

"Yes."

* * *

4 The Ritual of Expression

"It just says that we have to tell each other how much we love one another." Trip sighed. These test were really stupid and starting to get on his nerves. "Fuck this." He muttered after much deliberation. T'Pol gave him a questioning glance that seemed to look right through him.

He stood up again and rubbed his temples. "Listen. I don't like you and you sure as hell don't like me so why don't we just get through this without one of us committing first degree murder."

T'Pol seemed to take this into consideration. It was the most logical, not to mention the preferred solution. Neither of them was happy about being here and frankly, neither of them enjoyed the company. "So we are not going to continue to perform these rituals?"

"Hell, No! I don't want you to take hours outta my day to tell me how much of an ass I am!"

Part of T'Pol was relieved by this, anything was better then being in the same room with this human fool.

"Very well." She stood and walked from the room, "Have a good day Commander."

Trip snorted.

He knew she didn't mean it.

* * *

Day Two

T'Pol awoke the next morning to find the sun beaming in through the curtains of her bedroom window. She had awoken far later then she had originally intended, which gave her pause. Normally her sleeping habits were fairly regular, but for some reason she had felt restless last night. But despite that it was still very early in the morning, though not early enough for T'Pol and the large empty temple seemed to reverberate with a peaceful, quiet energy.

The environment seemed perfect for a morning bath. It would also be perfect for some silent meditation and reflection. Perhaps, she would be able to draw some peace from her current predicament.

Sliding off her sleeping robe, T'Pol walked nude down the hallway towards the temple's luxurious bathroom. She had no need for modesty, no one was watching and Commander Tucker was certainly not disciplined enough to awaken himself at this hour of the day. So there would be nothing wrong in indulging in a small amount of unfettered freedom.

Upon entering the bathroom T'Pol was greeted by a cloud of steam that descended around her like a cloak, blocking her vision. It was so thick that even her superior Vulcan senses were dulled by it. She peered into the steam and could almost make out the outline of a figure.

As she got closer, the ventilation from her entrance finally reached the back of the room and the steam cleared.

In front of her stood a very naked Charles Tucker.

When he realized he wasn't alone, Trip turned to see who it was and got the shock of his life. T'Pol was right in front of him. Completely naked.

His jaw dropped to his knees and his breath caught in his throat. She was beautiful. Her golden skin and voluptuous curves seemed to sing out to him in a symphony of flesh, an opera of beauty. Trip was not an expert on fine art but he was pretty positive that this girl could have doubled for Aphrodite without anybody noticing. When his eyes lingered for a moment on her full breasts and pouty lips, Trip felt every ounce of blood in his body flood to his groin.

T'Pol on the other hand was to busy noticing Trip's long, lean physique. His powerful muscular arms and chiseled abs. For a pathetic human engineer, Commander Tucker had the look of a man cast in bronze. She found the experience most disturbing. Standing naked in the same room as Commander Tucker was raising her body temperature significantly. She felt flushed and suddenly very distracted.

Tucker knew he had to say something, anything. "Ummm...would you like to use the bathroom?"

"Yes." She said, her voice suddenly a little bit huskier, "I would."

* * *

At the breakfast table, neither of them could look each other in the eye for very long. Trip especially was having trouble because of the fact that every time he closed his eyes he saw her naked body. It was like an inescapable nightmare.

T'Pol looked over at Tucker for a only a single moment but that was just long for her to watch a bead of sweat and moisture roll down his forehead and into his uniform, leaving a trail of moisture all the way. She couldn't help but remember the time in Decon when he put his...

"I must excuse myself for meditation purpose."

* * *

Sitting at the back of the village pub, Reed took a deep sip of the cloudy substance that the Eltakins passed off as beer. He had a good reason to get plastered. T'Pol was getting married. He snorted when he thought about it. Stupid Yank bastard.

Reed never showed it but he was very jealous of Commander Tucker. Reed had never been an easy guy to know. He never shared things and had trouble opening up to people about how he felt. For years he had yearned to experience that unknown level of closeness with someone. Then he met T'Pol.

He could see it in her eyes. The same yearning, the same desire for closeness. He thought maybe he could stand a chance with her.

How ironic. The one person on the ship he wanted to finally be close to was also the most distant.

For weeks, he'd done his best to get her to notice him, taking the same duty shifts. Bumping into her in the mess hall. In short, just being himself when she was looking.

But now any chance in hell was out the window.

Trip was involved.

He knew guys like Trip in school. Handsome, charming, attractive on so many different levels. Guys like Trip could get a woman out of their pants in zero degree weather.

Now HIS potential girl and that Valentino were getting married and there was nothing he could possibly do about it.

He took another sip of his beer. The rotten poof had probably already seen her naked or something.

Reed raised his glass to the empty bar and muttered to himself. "I saw 'er first mate." He slurred before finishing off the bottle and starting a new one.

* * *

Trip walked through the curtain door of T'Pol's room, determined to talk about what just happened. He found the Vulcan kneeling in front of her meditation candle with her eyes closed and her brow furrowed in thought. "May I help you Commander?" she said with out opening her eyes.

"Yeah, We gotta talk about what just happened in the bathroom." He stood firm and put on his resolve face.

"Why?" she still had her eyes closed at continued meditating.

Trip looked at her with puzzlement. 'Why?', that was her response? "Umm well...because!"

"Commander, We have seen each other in a state of undress before."

"Yeah but..."

She finally looked at him and raised her eyebrow. "Why should this situation be any different?"

Tucker thought this over and laughed. T'Pol's sense of logic just stopped him from turning a molehill into a mountain. He smiled at her "You have a pretty good point."

"Then this subject will require no further discussion."

He laughed again and started towards the doorway, "You want me to make you some tea?"

"Yes I would, thank you."

Tucker walked out of the room, his tension gone. Its place was taken by an embarrassed but good natured smile and a impeccable good mood.

When she was sure he was gone, T'Pol released a deep breath and a low moan. He was very handsome.

Even with his clothes on.

* * *

**DAY THREE**

The Ritual Of Sharing

"I feel good. You?"

"I am well."

"Great."

* * *

The Ritual Of Touch

Trip reached for her hand and smiled. "I still think you're a good person." He said

T'Pol raised an eyebrow at he fellow officer. "You are not unpleasant."

* * *

The Ritual Of Honesty

"You gotta weird hair cut."

"I do not like your odor."

* * *

The Ritual Of The Kiss

"Still wanna skip it?"

"Yes."

* * *

The Ritual Of Expression

"Can we skip this one too?"

"Yes."

**DAY FIVE**

"So you want rice?" Trip said, getting out a pan to cook with. After nearly a week together, Trip and T'Pol had found that living under the same roof was not entirely unbearable. Certain aspects of their personalities developed a symbiotic relationship with one another.

For instance, Trip discovered that he had a hidden calling in cooking meals for T'Pol. He'd cook rice and meatless pastas that she seemed to eat with relish.

There were times when they almost acted like a married couple.

"Yes, that would be appropriate." T'Pol put aside her books and papers in preparation for the coming meal. It was odd but she found herself actually excited about eating Commander Tucker's cooking.

"Commander?"

"Yeah?" He replied without looking up from his work.

"Where did you learn how to cook?"

He smiled and looked at her, he wasn't expecting that one. "Mom. She sort of made me learn."

"I have observed that in your culture, cooking is considered to be a duty preformed by females." She tilted her head in curiosity, "Why would your mother wish for you learn how to cook?"

"I dunno. Mom did a lot of things I didn't understand. That's sorta why I spent most of my time with my Dad. We did everything together."

She nodded in understanding. "I had a similar relationship with my own father."

Trip's face took on a shocked impression. In a voice of mock surprised he said "You had parents?!" He flashed her his best sarcastic smile and kept cooking. She continued but gave him an odd look. "My mother was quite difficult to live with. I found my father was more accommodating. "

"Why's that?"

"I was an only child. My father believed that I would carry on in his legacy after his death. He went to great lengths to teach me about being a diplomat." A faraway countenance seemed to wrap itself around T'Pol's face. "He died just before I turned nineteen."

"I'm-I'm sorry."

"It is unnecessary to apologize."

"I know, its called sympathy."

T'Pol took a deep breath.

Empathy.

One of the more admirable emotions embraced by humanity and she had no idea how to react to it. It had been a long time been long time since anyone had given her that kind of gift.

"Thank you, Commander."

Trip smiled at her again. "Yer welcome." He turned back to his cooking, still smiling.

* * *

**DAY SIX**

Reed had hoped that they would hate each other.

He had waited patiently for the halfway point check up to arrive and during that time he was filled with anticipation. Everyday, he hoped that T'Pol and Tucker would do nothing but bicker and argue. But as he sat across the table from them, he knew that wasn't the case.

"It ain't so bad, Reed." Trip said as he took another bite of the hearty steak and eggs breakfast that Reed had brought from the ship. The Eltakins were vegetarians, so Trip had been eating nothing but rice and a tofu like substance for six days. Tucker had been relieved beyond all words when he saw the real food Chef had made for him. "Basically...we're friends."

Reed felt his heart sink. She liked him. Hell, she was probably screwing him nightly and massaging his feet. He could almost see her on her knees whispering this little pretty boy's name. 'Oh Trip,' She'd say, 'I love you so much. You're the only real man on the entire ship.'

Yank bastard.

Trip took another bite of his meal and continued talking with a full mouth. "She reall' in't to bad." He said between chews. As he talked, small pieces of steak flew out of his mouth. One of the pieces landed about an inch from Reed's left hand. The Englishman carefully wiped the food away with the edge of his napkin. What the hell did she in this uncultured little...

"She told me about her dad," Trip said sadly after washing his food down with a glass of orange juice, "After he died, She and her Mom stopped talkin'." The engineer got a far off look in his eyes, "She really misses the guy. I can tell."

But Reed was listening anymore, he was just staring at Trip with daggers for corneas.

* * *

"I have found that living with the Commander is not entirely unbearable."

If someone had a knife, Reed would have already thrown himself on it. "S-so you like Tucker?" He winced when he asked that. Did he really want the answer to that? "Mr. Tucker and I have found a way to co-exist."

This was terrible. She really did like Tucker. And he was nothing to her.

He swallowed and prepared to continue, "So are you glad its almost over with?"

T'Pol paused before answering. She actually needed to think about her response. "Yes, returning to the ship will be...good."

* * *

Ambassador Creloun cracked open a bottle of beer and gave his 'secretary' a quick peck on the cheek. "So how's our favorite couple?"

Reed suddenly remembered that little pause T'Pol made before answering his question. He looked at Creloun and sighed. "They're...

...happy."

* * *

**DAY TEN**

T'Pol's eyes shot open.

She had the dream again.

It seemed more vivid this time. The blaring jazz music was louder then before and the room seemed darker, smokier. The scratches in the wood table seemed deeper. It was as though someone turned up the volume inside her brain.

T'Pol climbed out of bed and stared at the early morning sky. Since meeting the other Vulcan's, T'Pol had done every thing to keep from having that dream again.

So why was she having it now?

* * *

Trip hit the "on" button for the stove and smacked a pan on top. He hummed the tune to 'Amazing Grace' as he started work on a fried rice dish that seemed to almost taste like grits. He shook his head at the thought. Grits were great with bacon and eggs but all by themselves...

He needed to get the hell off this planet before it drove him nuts. He found himself smiling when T'Pol wandered in, a little more disheveled then usual.

She saw him. The human. He was smiling and singing some primitive Earth song. Ordinarily, Tucker's expressive attitude didn't bother her but on this particular morning she found it unbearable.

"Mornin' T'Pol. You hungry?" The slight hiss of rice hitting the pan rang through the air.

"I do not require a meal." T'Pol closed her eyes, trying to shut him out.

Tucker shrugged and went back to his work. Funny, she usually expected breakfast first thing. He inhaled sharply. If he was going to ask he should do it now. "Hey, umm can I ask you somethin'?"

"What?"

"Why don't you smile?"

T'Pol felt her eyes narrow ever so slightly. How dare he ask her such an intensely personal question. He was not completely ignorant of Vulcan culture. He already knew her answer so why would he ask? Obviously, so he could make some kind of judgement on her.

Trip kept talking, unaware of what it was doing to T'Pol. "Its just that I've seen other Vulcan's at least admit the like somethin', but you don't even let yourself do that. So I guess my question is why don't you want to open up-"

"Commander, if you have any questions about the Vulcan way of life then feel free to look through the ships reference materials when we return. In the mean time please refrain from asking your usual inane questions."

Trip turned off the stove and walked over to where T'Pol was sitting in the dining room. "I didn't ask about Vulcan's I asked about you."

"Then perhaps you shouldn't ask."

"What the hell is your problem?"

"My only problem appears to be you and your primitive lack of logic."

"Hey!"

"Go away Commander."

"No."

"Then I will leave."

T'Pol jumped from her seat and stormed out of the room.

* * *

T'Pol closed the curtain door to her room and leaned against the wall.

It was horrifying. She was so close to losing control. Every cell in her body was on fire with raw emotion and it was killing her from the inside out. She could not last much longer.

"Hey we ain't done talkin'!"

Trip's smooth southern drawl rumbled through her ear drums and assaulted her brain. She grimaced. Why didn't he leave her alone?

"Commander..."

**"NO GOD DAMN IT! I WANT A FUCKIN' ANSWER!"**

"Please just go..."

**"WHY ARE YOU BEING A BITCH? I THOUGHT WE WERE GETTING ALONG?"**

"I wish for you to..."

**"WHAT'S A MATTER? YOU TOO GOOD TO BE FRIENDS WITH A HUMAN?"**

"SHUT UP!" T'Pol marched up to him and got so close to his face that she nearly spit in his eye, "YOU ENJOY TALKING SO MUCH THAT THE AIR ON THIS PLANET HAS BEGUN TO THIN CONSIDERABLY!"

Trip nearly had a heart attack. She was actually yelling at him. T'Pol was angry.

In fact, she wasn't just angry. She was furious. Her whole body was tensed and her eye's had a look of seething rage beneath the surface. Her shouting only stopped him for a minute though, he didn't give up.

**"WELL, WELL, WELL, YOU DO HAVE A SPINE!"**

**"COMMANDER, SHUT UP!"**

**"FUCK YOU!"**

Their faces were inches away from each other now. He felt her cool breath on his rough face. She could smell his scent rising slowly into her nostrils. He felt a warming rush of blood flow through his body and an uncomfortable stirring in his lower body. T'Pol raised an eyebrow at his obvious discomfort and released a deep breath.

And then,

they kissed.

* * *

After a few moments, the kiss deepened into something much more.

Trip couldn't take the gentle way she traced his jaw. His hands shot out of their own volition, his fingers rapidly tunneling through her short brown hair. He forced her head to meet his own. Lips slammed against lips, and a plundering of her mouth occurred without remorse. For a few fleeting moments, he swore he could actually _see_ the warp reaction.

Just as suddenly as he had grabbed her, Trip let go. His hands spastically and slowly released her hair and slid down her body,

grazing the sides of her breasts before tracing over the bones of her hips. Ruthlessly severing the hidden side zip, he shoved her pants down, letting them pool around her boot-clad feet. His palms quickly covered hers, drawing her back into the cradle of his hips. <Where they belong,> he thought woozily.

T'Pol moaned in utter abandon into his mouth. The sound of her moan made him feel like a green fifteen-year old again. Trip absently realized as she kicked free of her pants. Breaking their kiss, she let her lips trace down his jaw towards his collarbone, sucking and licking for what felt like forever at the tender and rapidly bruising flesh

It took forever for them to finish

Minutes that felt like hours.

Hours that felt like years.

Their passions moved like the tide, ebbing and flowing across the shore of some distant paradise. And like the tides, They felt their rhythms change between the slow movement of tender lovemaking and the hard violence of animal sex.

Their waves rose and broke only to rise once again.

In the end, the sex left them sated and sleepy with their arms wrapped tightly around each other.

* * *

Trip awoke in the middle of the night but decided that his muscles were far too sore for him to be doing any kind of moving.

He smiled to himself, remembering how they got that sore.

T'Pol was lying against him with her head resting against his chest. He could feel her breath tickling his skin.

"Trip..."

Her voice sounded like poetry to his ears leaving him with a lingering shiver inside of him. He tilted his head to look at her face, thinking that she was waking up. He smiled again when he realized she was still asleep and dreaming about him.

"T'Pol," He whispered quietly to himself, lazily running his hands through her hair "What are we going to do now?"

He leaned down and kissed her lightly on the forehead before falling back to sleep.

* * *

**DAY ELEVEN**

T'Pol's eyes snapped open sharply when the memory of the previous day suddenly struck her. She looked down to see that she was draped around Commander Tucker's sleeping form.

She just disgraced her family, her species, and herself.

She had sex with a human.

Her skin suddenly seemed to crawl off her body, shivers ran up and down her spine,

How could she? How could she have lowered herself to the level of some common human primate? It was disgusting!

T'Pol kicked away the covers and leapt from the bed, hoping desperately to get away before her 'lover' awoke and tried to stop her. Despite all her efforts, a small look of fear crossed her face as she gathered her clothes and ran from the room.

* * *

Trip had slept until noon.

In his defense, he had spent the entire DAY having sex with a beautiful woman. So he had a legitimate reason to be so tired.

When he finally did get up, he moaned and stretched lazily before lifting himself off the bed. Everything seemed a lot brighter today. A lot shinier. Of course that was because he just had sex.

Twelve times.

He smiled a little at the sharp, excruciating pain in his torso. Somewhere between the ninth and tenth time he had broken or seriously bruised a rib.

Not that he cared.

Trip was no greenhorn when it came to sex, he had experienced his share of wild nights before. Even participated in a threesome in college. But what he just did with T'Pol was unbelievable. It was having sex on a roller coaster. First he had been up, then he had been down, and at some point he had been upside down for a few minutes.

And then there was her face. Every time he closed his eyes now he saw her cute little Vulcan visage scrunched up in pleasure and joy. It was like she was in his head and he couldn't get rid of her.

It was wonderful.

* * *

Trip finally found T'Pol sitting at the kitchen table, fully dressed and reading one of those Vulcan textbooks she had brought with her.

"Mornin' Baby," He said, letting his voice drop into a husky tone, "Have a good...sleep?"

T'Pol felt the muscles in her back stiffen unconsciously. That...thing was finally awake.

"Good Morning Commander, I trust you slept well?" She didn't even look at him.

Trip suddenly felt very ill. She just called him 'Commander'. "What's wrong, sweetie?"

"Nothing is wrong." She paused before continuing, "I must also ask that you please refrain from calling me any name except my own."

"But I thought..."

"If you are about to refer to yesterday's events then I must ask that you please not mention them."

"But I thought..."

"Commander, having sexual intercourse with you did not affect my emotional state in any way." She finally turned her head to look at him, "It was merely sex, that is all."

Tucker felt crushed. Like someone had torn his heart out and wiped their feet on it.

But pain quickly gave way to rage and Tucker began to see red.

"Fine." He muttered with as much venom as he could muster, "I'll go cook us something to eat."

Then he stormed out, entertaining thoughts about poisoning her food.

T'Pol tilted her head when she heard a final word slip from his lips as he left.

"Bitch."

* * *

**DAY TWELVE**

T'Pol had spent the better part of the last few hours mentally preparing for the Final Ritual required by local law. The test was not inherently difficult. Actually, it was incredible simple.

She and Commander Tucker would only have to stand in front of the Eltakin Council and perform the same rituals they had performed everyday during their isolation.

Well, almost everyday.

But this was different. They would have an audience. An entire room of people was going to hear her confess her 'love' to Trip.

She tried to sigh but caught herself. She was referring to him as Trip. This was most disturbing.

* * *

The Ritual of Sharing

"Let the betrothed step forward."

T'Pol suddenly felt a very sour taste in the back of her throat. She fought to maintain control of herself. Her impending marriage to Commander Tucker suddenly became far more real.

The voice coming from the head of council table spoke again, "You may begin the first Ritual, Commander."

Trip took a deep breath, "OOO-Kay." He smiled nervously and looked deeply into T'Pol's eyes. "T'Pol? I'm scared shitless."

For a moment, T'Pol entertained the thought of just running out. The idea of confessing her feelings to Tucker alone was enough to paralyze her with fear, but the fact that she now had an audience. This was a massive violation of Vulcan tradition.

Then she remembered why she had undertaken this mission in the first place.

Orders.

She was under strict orders.

Any admission she made to the Commander would only be for the good of the ship. Right?

"Commander." She took a deep breath. " I am also afraid."

She took his hand in her own and continued talking.

* * *

The Ritual of Touch

"But I have learned to temper that fear with resolve." The barest hint of a smile played across her lips. "Just like you. I have always admired that."

Trip smiled back. "Well, I have to say I always admired YOUR resolve. But..."

* * *

The Ritual of Honesty

"...Sometimes that resolve can cloud your judgement." He squeezed her hand. "You just need to loosen up."

Anger flashed inside of T'Pol, why didn't he understand?

"Commander, Your largest flaw is that you can not accept what you cannot control." She took a deep breath, "Certain things will never happen."

* * *

The Ritual of the Kiss

Tucker grabbed her roughly by the shoulders and pulled her closer. "Forget control." He said, gripping her tightly.

And then they kissed.

* * *

The Ritual of Expression

When they broke apart the entire world fell away.

Trip looked deeply her eyes before he uttered three very important words. "I love you."

* * *

T'Pol neatly folded the last of her belongings and laid them inside of her suitcase. After their display in front of the council they were free to leave, But for some reason she wanted to stay.

It was unusual how in the past twelve days, she had become comfortable in this place. It had begun to almost feel like a home. She had actually enjoyed her stay here. She had enjoyed the company.

"That was a pretty good performance."

She was somewhat surprised to see Commander Tucker standing in the doorway of her room, his knapsack was slung over his shoulder. "I just thought I'd say good-bye before we went back to the ship."

T'Pol felt the desire to say something important but suddenly changed her mind.

"So I guess..." Tucker flashed her a faint smile before turning to leave, "...I'll see you round."

And with that he was gone.

* * *

Malcolm Reed wandered grumpily to door to his quarters. It was well past midnight and he was more then a little pissed off for being woken up.

But then he saw who had pushed the chime button and all anger left him.

"T'Pol?" he stuttered, suddenly aware that he was dressed only in his boxers, "What is it?"

* * *

"May I enter?" T'Pol waited patiently for him to step aside and let her enter. She ignored is state of undress and walked past him when he finally let her through. His half nudity was hardly her concern. "Mr. Reed I require your advice."

Reed was mortified. Oh sure, he fanaticized this sort of thing but in his dreams she was wearing a pair of silk panties and fishnet stockings.

And of course, in his dreams she wanted a lot more then his advice.

"Mr. Reed? Are you listening?"

He shook himself out of his thoughts, kicking himself for thinking about sex in her presence. "Umm yeah, yes, go ahead."

T'Pol suddenly seemed to lose her nerve but some how she pushed on, desperate to talk to someone about her problem. She took a deep breath, "I am having doubts about my annulment."

Reed just blinked. "But why?" He whispered

T'Pol took another breath and told him the entire story.

* * *

Reed was stunned when T'Pol finished.

She loved Tucker.

She didn't know it yet. But he could tell.

She kept talking the time she and Tucker had sex and about the tingle in her stomach when she was around him.

Dear god, she had it bad.

"What do you think Mr. Reed?" T'Pol looked up at him with pleading eyes begging for his guidance, "Should I get the annulment and forget about the Commander?"

Reed suddenly felt very torn. Could he make this decision? On the first hand, Reed wanted T'Pol to be happy. He wanted nothing more then for the woman he loved to live a comfortable life with someone she cared about. T'Pol deserved that and Tucker probably did too.

But on the other hand, could he really let her go?

The violent battle raged inside of him until he came to the only decision inside of his heart.

"T'Pol," He smiled at her with a big sly grin, "Get the annulment."

* * *

"I now pronounce you man and wife." Archer gave the happy couple a smile and said, "You may now kiss the Vulcan!"

A cheer rose up from the wedding party and the entire mess hall erupted into cries of "Hooray" and "Took em long enough!" everybody was in a wonderful mood. Everyone except for Malcolm Reed who just sat drinking whiskey in the corner.

He still couldn't tell what T'Pol saw in him.

Malcolm just sighed when he thought about HIS girl getting married to Trip. He sighed again when he remembered why she married him.

His advice.

One night she came to him and he told her to annul her first marriage to Commander Tucker.

But then he told her to go out with Trip for awhile, to get to know him better as a person before getting involved romantically. He told her that all great relationships were based on love AND friendship. That she would never be happy in her marriage with Trip until she was sure she could get both.

Now one year and a secret relationship later, the galaxies' first Human- Vulcan couple had finally tied the knot...again.

And Reed couldn't be more miserable.

But as Malcolm watched Commander Tucker stick his tongue down the woman who Reed loved more then anything else in the universe, he felt a little tinge of contentment. T'Pol was going to have a long and happy life with a man who truly cared about her.

And he was the person she could thank for that.

He took another drink as he watched the crew throw rice as Trip and T'Pol ran from the mess hall and towards their quarters to start their five-day honeymoon.

Sure he was alone but at least she was happy and wasn't that what love was supposed to be about?

The old adage was true, Nice guys did finish last.

But they felt better about themselves.


End file.
